Konoha Institute of Technology
by Riayu
Summary: Welcome to College, the most important part of your life, blah blah blah. What's it matter who you'll meet? Then again, that girl with the weird hair is kind of interesting, and why is everyone hitting turbulance? Sequel to KABBS
1. Deja vu again?

**Riayu: **Welcome, everyone, to Konoha Institute of Technology! A.k.a., KIT!

**Psy: **Stop right now if you haven't read KABBS (Konoha All Boy's Boarding School). This is the direct sequel to that, so GO BACK AND READ IT!

**Sharin:** Right in my ear. Thanks, Psy. Love you too.

**Riayu: **Would you two freaking shut up? Anyways, sorry it took _so _long to write this. It was going to be a collab, but it didn't really work out. I'm adopting it and putting all the chapters here. Sorry guys.

**Sharin: **This is just the first chapter, if you already read it, you'll have to wait a few days for the next one.

**Disclaimer: **She didn't own Naruto for Scars, she didn't own Naruto for KABBS and she doesn't own Naruto now.

"Kuro, wake up," the little boy opened his onyx eyes, his lips bending as he saw the dark skinned face of his mother. She smiled back and bent down, kissing his forehead softly.

"Good morning, mommy," he said groggily, rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands. She picked him up and held him closely, rocking him back and forth as she shifted her weight from foot to foot. He yawned, stretched, then wrapped his arms around her neck.

"What do you want for breakfast, Kuro-chan?" she asked, carrying him out of the room and down the hallway to the kitchen. She set him down and began to go through cabinets, looking for breakfast food.

"Chocolate cake and ice cream," he exclaimed, smiling up at her.

"That's not breakfast, silly," she smiled fondly as she took eggs and bacon out of the refrigerator. "Go wake grandma up, Kuro-chan," she said, putting the food on the counter and pulling out a griddle, heating it and turning to see that Kuro was looking at her as sternly as a three-year-old can. "Please," she added, giving him a gooey smile. He nodded, his face relaxing into its usual childish smile as he turned and ran down the hallway and into his grandmother's room. The woman that slept in the bed was no more than thirty years old, not the usual grandmother, and had auburn hair and baby-blue eyes, laugh lines at the corners. Her slight snores filled Kuro's ears as he approached her bed cautiously, but, as always, her eyes fluttered opened as he grew near.

"You'll never surprise me, Kuro-chan, not like that," she swung her legs out from under the covers and stood up, stretching momentarily before scooping him into her arms and kissing his cheek.

"Mommy's making breakfast," he said as the smell wafted through the house. "She wouldn't let me have cake," he pouted.

"Growing boys don't need cake for breakfast, they need meat and vegetables." She said, carrying him out into the kitchen and setting him down in a chair.

"Good morning, mother," Sharin said cheerily, flipping the bacon and eggs over on the griddle.

"Anything?" the woman asked, reaching into the fridge for juice.

"Nothing, just the same old bird and the name Sharin. I'm sorry, mother, this must be a burden."

"Don't worry; you and Kuro have brought happiness to my home. You do more than your part around the house, helping to take care of an old woman," she smiled.

"You're nowhere near being and old woman," Sharin slid the bacon onto a plate and the eggs onto another, putting them both down on the table before taking out three plates and putting them down as well.

"Thank you, Kuro-chan," he had put out the silverware and napkins and was back in his seat, waiting for the women to join him.

"Grandma Lucy, sit down, I'll get the drinks," Kuro offered, on his feet in a blur of speed and at her side in an instant.

"Don't you worry about me, I can handle this much," she said, smiling at him as she took down three glasses and put them on the table, filling each with orange juice. They sat and ate in silence, Sharin watching the clock closely. When it was quarter to eight she stood up, putting her dishes in the sink and running into the bathroom to brush her teeth and use the toilet one last time.

"I'm off to school," she called as she pulled her bag off of the hook by the door, dangling it from her fingers as she put her shoes on and opened the door, slamming it shut behind her. She walked down the sidewalk at a brisk pace, plugging headphones into her ears as she walked and pressing a button on her Zune to play the music. The minute she stepped onto campus her music was off and her senses were sharp. She walked quietly and quickly, pulling her hood up over her head to hide her strangely colored hair and face. She carried her bag like a briefcase and swung her arms in time with her step, watching everyone to make sure no one was watching her.

When she got to her first class she settled in a seat in the back corner nearest the window, watching the people mill around below as she waited for class to start. Slowly other people began to file in, taking seats near the front of the class if they were nerds and as far back as possible if they were slackers. The teacher came in and began her usual lecture on alleles and gametes, writing on the board in loopy cursive. Sharin watched the other students, some taking note feverishly, others listening to their MP3 players. She sat, doodling in her notebook and staring out of the window, jotting down occasional notes, but mostly enjoying the view.

Half-way through the hour-long class she felt someone's eyes on her and looked to see a young woman staring at her with midnight-blue eyes. The girl was tall, thin, and had pale skin that contrasted with her raven hair. Sharin had never noticed the girl before and chose to ignore her now, pulling her hood up to block out the girl's gaze.

"Sharin?" the professor called, looking at her expectantly.

"Yes," she said automatically.

"Who decides whether the child is male or female?" she asked. Sharin gave the answer then looked back down at her notebook; her hand was moving the pencil to sketch lines on a new sheet. The girl with the pale skin and dark hair was forming on the page and she watched as background erupted behind her. A room with counters and shelves, monitors pushed up against walls, medical utensils scattered over the counters and floor. The girl was lying on her back, her skin exposed to the open air, metal objects sticking haphazardly out of a deep wound on her abdomen. Her hand froze, the pencil clanking down onto the desk and onto the floor, rolling under someone's desk, the boy ignoring it completely.

"Sharin?" the professor called, but she was frozen solid, her face bent in disgusted fear. "Sharin," everyone was staring at her, waiting for her to say something. Slowly she began to feel her fingertips and feet, the numbness fading away. She looked up at the teacher, glanced at the board where a list of words were written, and said the first thing that came to mind.

"You spelled gametes wrong," the classroom erupted in laughter and the professor's face flamed in fury.

"Go," her voice shook as she pointed at the door. Sharin opened her mouth but she just shook his head. "Just go." She stood, throwing her notebook and pen into her bag before storming out of the room, slamming the door on the laughter coming from inside the room. She leaned against the wall, taking a deep breath, trying her best to calm herself, wiping at the moisture collecting in her eyes, being angry always seemed to make her cry. The minute her anger began to ebb she felt her face flush with embarrassment. She had just been kicked out of class, what was she supposed to do now?

The only thing she could do, go to the library and read something. Or surf the internet. She liked that choice better and was out of the building and heading towards the library in an instant. She pulled her hood up over her brightly colored hair as she walked, even though there was almost no one outside, and the few that were had spread out in the shade of trees to avoid the glaring sun. The librarian gave her a look when she walked in so she pulled her hood down before taking a seat at a free computer, signing into her account and turning on the internet. She was looking at pictures done by Picasso when someone tapped her on the shoulder. Her head whipped around, a few strands of hair falling into her face. It was a girl. Great, girls' were the worst.

"I'm sorry to bother you," she girl said, truly genuine. "I was just wondering how you got your hair to turn that color," her eyes were completely innocent, her voice void of any mocking tone. Her hair was plain brown, pulled back into two buns. She smiled down at her, eyes friendly. Sharin couldn't risk it; she couldn't draw attention to herself. She couldn't make friends. So she did what she always did.

"No hablo ingles." The girl look confused and did what they always did, backed away, going back to her friends and laughing quietly with them when they made a joke.

"That's not true," someone said, the voice hushed. "You can speak English perfectly." Sharin turned her head to see the boy she had met earlier sitting there, his raven hair pulled back in a neat ponytail. "Sharin, right?" he asked, standing up from his computer and walking over to lean against the table beside her.

"Yeah…Sorry, I'm terrible with names." She gave him a questioning look.

"Uchiha Itachi," he said, nodding without smiling. "Why'd you lie to her?"

"Getting close to people leads to questions that have complicated answers. Most of them I don't have any answers to at all. It was a mistake to have mentioned anything to you before," she added matter-of-factly. "I shouldn't have told you anything."

"I see," he was about to turn away, but she grabbed his wrist. She had seen the hurt in his eyes. She had seen it the first time she met him as well. It didn't have anything to do with what she had just said, something had happened, and she wanted to know what.

"But, since I already started sharing, I guess it wouldn't hurt you to know more." She said when he turned back towards her. "If you'll share some stuff with me." He nodded, grabbed his books, and followed her out of the library to the quadrangle. He sat on the small brick projection that surrounded the flag pole and patted the space next to him, inviting her to join. She sat, feeling awkward at the fact that their shoulders were nearly touching, her face turning hot.

"Right," Itachi said, looking at her face closely. It was soft with a rather pronounced chin, though it wasn't in a negative way. He skin was tanned, her eyes shining brightly, her lips full and soft looking. "Who's Kuro?"

Her face turned tomato red in a matter of seconds, her eyes filling with anxiety. She brought her hands up, resting her elbows on her knees, and pressed her palms against her eyes. Itachi had been assuming it was a boyfriend, but what about a boyfriend could be so embarrassing.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled, not taking her hands away from her eyes. "It's just…I didn't think you would remember. I really hoped you wouldn't remember." She sighed, took a bottle out of her bag, and took a long drink. Her face faded back to normal color and she sighed again, holding the bottle out to Itachi.

"Want some?" she asked. He looked at it warily. Kids were notorious for carrying sake around in their water bottles, and he was strictly against drinking it. "Don't worry; it's just water with lemon in it." He took the bottle and drank some, feeling it cool him slightly.

"Right, Kuro is my son. Kuro Taiyu…" she trailed off, not able to give a last name. Her face began to heat again when he was silent. "You okay?" she asked, looking at him. His eyes and face were both carefully blank.

"How old is he?" he asked, his voice low.

"Mmm…two years and a few months. He's actually very smart for his age. And he's got a great sense of humor." She laughed nervously and was relieved to see him crack a smile.

"Okay then, it's your turn to ask me a question."

"Can I ask you anything?" she asked, looking down at her folded hands.

"Yup, anything at all."

"Why are your eyes so sad?" she asked, still not looking up from her hands. She could feel him stiffen, could tell that he was trying to keep his face blank, could tell his eyes were confused, all without looking at him.

"A friend of mine died three years ago in a train crash." He said, his voice neutral.

"Did you love her?" Sharin asked, still staring down at her hands.

"Yes," he whispered.

"Did she know?"

"I think so."

"Did she love you back?"

"I hope so."

"Yo, Itachi, you okay?" Sasori asked, staring as his brunette friend walked through the door. It was late, dinner had already been eaten and the dishes cleaned up. Usually Itachi wasn't home this late, it was a little strange.

"Fine," Itachi said absently, hanging his sweatshirt on a hook by the door and taking the elastic out of his hair. He lay back on the couch, pinching the bridge of his nose as he closed his eyes.

"Cheer up emo kid," a girl's voice said, something heavy crushed his chest.

"Suki," he said, his voice breathless. "Get off of me."

"Not unless you smile," he said, grinding her butt into his chest.

"Suki, I'll call your dad and get him to put you into that private college."

"I'd like to see you try," she said, getting off of him and sitting on the end of the couch. "What's wrong?"

"I met someone today," he said, pulling himself up and sitting cross-legged.

"Heaven forbid you make another friend, Itachi," she said sarcastically.

"Not what I meant. She seemed sort of familiar."

"What'd she look like?"

"Orange and blond hair, gold eyes, kinda short, dark skin…"

"Wait, dark like African?"

"No, dark like really tan. She had this look in her eyes, like she could almost remember who she was."

"Wait…what? She doesn't know who she is?"

"She said she lost her memory and was found three years ago. She has a three-year-old kid too."

"She doesn't sound like anyone you know."

"But it feels like I've known her for a long time."

"I got that feeling when I met Tobi. And when I met the rest of your friends. Maybe you're just supposed to be friends?" he didn't answer. There was nothing left for him to say. They sat in silence for a few minutes, Suki growing more and more agitated.

"Listen, if you're so worried about it, introduce us. I'll see if she's worthy of being friends with." She smiled confidently. "Is she staying in the dorms? Or does she have an apartment?" She was up again, running towards the door to get her shoes on.

"She lives with her mother about a mile from here," Itachi said, following her.

"Do you know her address?" Suki asked, snatching her coat from the hook.

"Yeah, but you don't have to…"

"But I want to! Tobi's still at work, so I have nothing better to do for the next few hours. We can bring Sasu-chan and Naru-kun with us." She smiled as she shrugged on her jacket then tossed Itachi his.

"Sure, why not?" he asked sarcastically. "Let's freak out her family with our oddities."

"That's the spirit!" Suki said, opening the door and running down the hallway to the stairs. She was already dragging Naruto and Sasuke out of the room by the time Itachi caught up with them.

"What are you doing?" he asked, watching the two of them struggle into their jackets.

"You said I could bring them," Suki said innocently.

"I was being sarcastic," he said, frowning slightly.

"Really? Too late. I already invited them. And they would be so broken up if you said they couldn't come." She looked at them with an evil glint in her eyes. "_Right guys?_" They both nodded fearfully, finally wrenching free and walking along silently.

"Where are we going anyways?" Naruto asked, putting his hands behind his head.

"You lead the way," Suki said, pushing Itachi in front of her. "I have no clue where I'm going." Itachi readily took the lead, recalling the strangely vivid directions. He wondered, as he walked, whether she had expected him to visit her some time soon. As they rounded a corner he saw the house she had described. All of the lights in the two-story house were on. It was painted a warm brown, standing out among the reds and blues of the other houses. The windows were large, one protruding with a window seat on it. In front of the house was a large patch of dirt, covered with vegetables that needed to be harvested, the flowers long dead.

"There it is," Itachi said, stopping at the corner to look it over.

"It looks nice enough," Suki said, giving it a swift once-over. "Let's go in!" Before Itachi could say anything the blonde girl was on the porch, knocking on the door. Naruto and Sasuke followed her, Itachi bringing up the rear reluctantly. The door opened just as Itachi reached the base of the stairs. A middle-aged woman with auburn hair stood in the doorway, looking out at them.

"Sharin told me you would be coming sometime soon. Come on in," she said, stepping aside and letting the four of them in.

"Oh, you brought friends with you?" Sharin asked, turning to face them. Itachi was surprised to see the small boy she was holding. He had hair like his mothers, red infused with blonde that came down to his jaws on the sides and back, cut above his eyebrows in the front. But his eyes were a deep contrast, black as space. He smiled at them, waving a hand. Suki immediately stepped forward, circling the two of them as she looked them over. When she stopped she was facing Sharin, a smile on her face.

"I approve," Suki said with a curt nod.

"Umm…Is that a good thing?" Sharin asked, looking at the strange blonde girl.

"I'm sorry about her," Itachi said, stepping between the two of them. "She's sort of like my little sister. This is Suki, Naruto, and Sasuke."

"You're little brother looks like you," Sharin said, setting the boy down. "This is my son, Kuro. I'm having some trouble getting him to bed. Think you could help?" she smiled at him as the young boy ran off.

"Naruto's actually pretty good with kids," Itachi said, turning to look at the blonde boy.

"Only because he's still one," Suki said, smiling devilishly. "So you're a freshman?"

"Yeah, you're a senior like Itachi?" she asked, leading them to the loft where Kuro was hiding. Naruto stepped forward carefully, kneeling down to look at the boy who was hiding beneath the futon. He started tickling Kuro, bringing him out when he was laughing too hard to resist.

"Does he need to brush his teeth first?" Naruto asked, holding the boy in a way that wouldn't allow him to kick.

"No, he already did that. He just needs to get into bed," she motioned to the only bedroom in the loft and Naruto went in, putting the boy in the bed. Sharin followed to tuck the little boy in.

When she emerged again she was more somber.

"I'm sorry, but I need to get to bed. I'm up at four in the morning to jog and get ready for the day. But you can come over tomorrow, it's the weekend." She walked them to the door, smiling and waving at them. "It was very nice to meet you all."

While they were walking back Suki was the first to speak.

"She seems like a good mother. I wish she was married to my dad. Whoever the father is, he sure is lucky to have someone like her." Itachi hadn't even thought of the father issue. Did she know who the father was? Did the father know he was a father? Were they dating? He banished the questions.

"Let's just get home, I'm tired."

**Riayu: **So there's the first chapter. Real quick, I want to say thank you to my friend Sye216 for being my editor for all of this in advance. I know you won't let me screw anything up.

**Sharin: **'Course she will, she wants to see you crash and burn! BURN!

**Psy: **You really should make sure she takes her meds.

**Riayu: **….Right. Well, I'll probably update sometime this week, so please read and review! Much love and huggles!


	2. A Bad Day

**Riayu: **I FEEL SO BAD! It's taking me forever to write this chapter! I've been semi-busy lately, and really lazy. I usually save my fanfics for when I'm not writing a bigger work, but I really wanted to get this out. So now I'm writing this _and _a novel.

**Psy: **I'm sure they don't mind as long as you don't take two weeks to update.

**Riayu: **Bursts** into sobs **But what if it does! I'm so sorry!

**Sharin: **Great, now she's crying. Great job, Psy. Great fucking job.

**Disclaimer: **Thank God she doesn't own Naruto, otherwise, we'd all be fucked.

**Riayu: **What's that supposed to mean?

**Sharin: **If we were _one _day late, you'd go into a whole guilt trip!

**Riayu: **I hate you.

* * *

The shrill beeps of the alarm clock earned it a good wallop, hard enough to send it clattering to the floor. A deep voice moaned and a body shifted, causing the mattress to creak.

"I swear!" Psy moaned, pulling her head out from under her pillow so she could glare at Zetsu's back. "How can you be so noisy in your sleep?" She kicked him once to rouse him then leaned over the edge of the bed to shut off the still-beeping alarm clock.

"So I can go back to sleep for another three hours," Zetsu mumbled from his cocoon of sheets.

"Well, now I can't go back to sleep." She kicked Zetsu again. "Why not set it to when you'll actually wake up?" She asked, rubbing her eyes. "Or is that too simple for you?"

"Shut up and go back to sleep." Zetsu mumbled, earning a harder kick.

"Don't you tell me to shut up!" she shouted, staring as he slowly emerged from the sheets.

"**Shut the fuck up and go back to sleep!**" he roared, his yellow eyes blazing with fury. "She was just trying to help." He said in a much quieter voice, his eyes flickering with compassion. "**Well, she's a stupid, cunt sucking bitch, so I don't give a fuck.**"

Psy stared for a moment before kicking him a final time, knocking him out of the bed, before storming out of the room. In the doorway she paused to collect the clothes lying there, then she walked through the suite and out the door to the elevator, dressing as she walked. By the time the elevator dinged and the doors slid apart to let her out she had her shirt on backwards and her pants on but unzipped. She stepped into the suite she shared with Naruto and Sasuke, located the bathroom in the darkness, and flicked on the lights. The clothes she had so hurriedly tried to put on were off in a half second. She started the shower, stepping into the hot water without bothering to adjust it.

She stood in the steam, allowing it to relax her for a moment, then she snapped her eyes opened. The irresponsible, stupid asshole of an idiot. She scrubbed herself then stepped out and dried. Slowly her anger mounted until she couldn't wait until lunch to sink her teeth into his flesh and rip his heart out.

She dressed in a tight black shirt, a pleated black skirt, and knee high boots, applying dark eye shadow and eyeliner, painting her lips a luscious red before leaving the suite to attend her biology class.

There was that weird kid again with the crazy hair and weird eyes, her hand always moving the pencil over her notebook. _Go on, look at me again. _Psy dared silently, clenching and unclenching her fist beneath the desk. And the little freak did. Psy glared straight back at her, a malicious smile creeping across her face. _Bad idea, kid. 'Cause now I'm gonna have to kick your ass. _

The girl looked at her notebook then up again, back and forth a few times before she finally noticed Psy's death glare. Immediately, she had her biology book out and her nose buried in it, her body quaking with fear.

Class was over fifteen minutes early and the kid who was as-good-as-dead was out of the door in a flash, pulling up the hood to her sweatshirt and tugging her bag behind her. Psy noted the band logo on the hoodies and color of the bag, following the girl slowly. She wouldn't do this like a coward behind the gym; she would do it in the quad so everyone could watch.

There she was, jogging across the quad as she frantically tried to keep her hood up, even though the day was sunny and warm. Psy caught up easily and grabbed the strap of her messenger bag to yank her to a halt. As the girl's body spun around, Psy pulled her fist back and let it fly, smashing it into the girl's jaw.

"Hey!" the girl yelled, stumbling back a little. She held a hand to her jaw and stared at Psy with wide eyes. Psy smiled, dumped her bag on the ground, and ran at the girl, swinging her fist again.

"Hey! Stop it!" The girl cried, dodging the swing. "I don't want to fight you!" Psy ignored her and swung her right fist, 'causing the girl to dodge left and run straight into an uppercut. People were gathering to watch the fight, some already cheering a little. The girl stopped, staring around with doe eyes, then jumped out of the way of another swing from Psy. Off came the sweatshirt, which was thrown down with the messenger bag, and the two of them were circling.

"I really don't want to fight you," the girl said, her gold eyes pleading.

"To bad, 'cause I really do," Psy said, smiling again. She ran at the girl and punched her straight in the gut, bringing her elbow down between the girl's back when she doubled over. The girl sprawled across the ground, falling still.

"You're a terrible fighter," Psy said, spitting on the ground beside the girls head before collecting her bag and walking off the quad. She walked down one of the sidewalks, ignoring the people that yelled at her when she stepped through their groups or split up couples, dodging obvious attempts to cause her pain or humiliation.

She was the first to enter her graphics design class and immediately sat at the back of the room and opening her account on the computer she was seated at. She ignored her professors talking and worked on the design she had started the day before, a lioness with an eight-pointed star in her eyes and blood dripping from her fangs. She had already sketched the lioness on a piece of paper for her art class, but she wanted to see it in 3-D. She had the shape of the lioness's head and ears completed perfectly by the time class was over, the eyes already beginning to show a little on her face. She immediately packed up her supplies, logged off of her computer, and walked back out into the morning air. Chemistry lab was next and she was glad that she had decided to always leave a pair of sneakers in the teacher's room. She slid them on before pulling on a lab coat and goggles, sweeping her long black hair back into a neat bun.

"Students, I have someone to introduce you all to!" Their teacher announced, smiling widely. "This is Kimimaro; he'll be our graduate aid for the rest of the semester. Psy, raise your hand." She did so without thinking, then looked around to see that her partner was absent. "Kimimaro, you'll be working with Psy today on this lab. She's our brightest student, so I'm sure you'll get along fine!"

_You've got to be kidding me! Could this day get any worse?_

"Weren't you friends with Kaki in high school?" Kimimaro asked, his eyes going hard as soon as he was next to Psy.

_Of course it can!_

"I was, you got something to say about it?" she asked, setting up a Bunsen burner and lighting it on the first try. She pulled out a test tube and poured powder and a liquid solution into it before setting it on a stand over the flame.

"No, nothing to say," but Kimimaro was smiling a sick smile as he added a drop of dark blue liquid to the solution over the flame, causing a plume of purple to form. Lab wasn't over fast enough for Psy, but the minute they were done she had her sneakers off and her boots on, putting her lab coat and goggles into her cubby hastily before running out of the door. Zetsu was waiting for her outside the building, leaning casually against the wall.

"I heard you got into a fight today with some weird looking kid," he said, trying to keep up with her brisk pace. She was silent. "You're not still sore about this morning, are you?" he asked, trying to take her hand in his. She wrenched it away. "**What's your problem?**"

"Do you really want to know?" she asked, wheeling around to stare at him. "My problem is that there's some deranged freak of a guy following me around and getting into my pants, then being a total asshole to me every time we finish having sex. He can't even decide whether he's a nice guy or the world's biggest fucktard! That's my problem, and I'm getting rid of it. Don't talk to me anymore, okay?" She smiled and walked away, pleased by the lack of a familiar set of footsteps behind her. But there was another pair just in front of her, and she didn't like them either.

"What the hell did you beat up Sharin for?" Itachi asked turning and falling into step with her.

"I'm sorry, did you think we were actually still friends after you killed my best friend?" Psy asked, staring straight ahead.

"She wouldn't want you to blame me, and you know it," Itachi hissed at her, a pained look in his eyes.

"How could I know what she wants? She's dead, remember. And last time I checked, dead people do go around telling their living friends who to blame. So I'll blame whoever the hell I want to blame, and I blame you and Deidara."

"Why'd you beat up that freshman?" Itachi asked, ignoring her comment.

"'Cause she looked at me."

"Everyone's looking at you; you're dressed like a whore."

"She looked at me yesterday too," Psy said through her teeth.

"Heaven forbid someone looks at you."

"What do you care anyways? I thought you said you wouldn't love someone again after Kaki died. Or are you just looking for a way to sate your snake?" She wheeled around and spit on the ground in front of him. "You're disgusting."

"You don't know what she's been through," Itachi said, glaring down at her. "You don't know how hard it is for her to be here."

"And guess what," Psy said, smiling sardonically. "I don't give a rat's ass! I wonder what Kaki would think if she knew you were falling for someone you can't have known for more than a few days. I bet she'd be cry, maybe she'd commit suicide if she could."

"Don't you talk about her!" Itachi said, shaking. "Don't even mention her name!"

"Why not? So you don't have to feel guilty every time you have sex?"

"Do you think she'd be happy with the way you are now? Do think that she wouldn't mind the way you're treating everyone? You're mad at the world because your friend is gone, so you snap at every person that looks at you when you don't want them to."

"Of course I'm mad at the world; it took away my best friend and stuck me with a bunch of assholes! The world obviously hates me, so why shouldn't I hate it back? Just leave me alone, okay? Nothing you say can make me hate you less, but everything you say makes me hate you a little bit more." She turned and walked away from him, back towards the quad. She ate a hurried lunch and spent the last half hour of her break in the art studio, inhaling the smell of the place.

She worked on their first project, painting a nature picture. They were supposed to a rough sketch, a detailed sketch, then ink and color it, and finally put it on the canvas. Most of the class was still back at the detailed sketch, but Psy was just about ready to put it on the canvas. There was usually someone else in the room, someone in a baggy sweatshirt and paint-smeared cargo pants, the hood of the sweatshirt pulled up to obscure any defining features, but that person had yet to arrive. Psy was still unsure of whether it was a boy or a girl, but she was sure that the person took their work very seriously. They never talked while they were in the room together, just worked silently on their paintings, but the mysterious person would often pause when passing by and point silently to a part of her sketch then point to the canvas, where it had either come out perfectly, or needed to be revisited. Psy could never find the courage to do the same.

But Psy was feeling bold that day, so she walked over to the other person's easel and looked at the nearly completed work. It was a woman standing with her back against the trunk of a tree, her hands out with the sun floating above them, a green meadow surrounding her with mountains in the distance. The woman didn't seem to belong there, wearing black combat boots and a pair of camo cargo shorts with a tight tank top that didn't cover her midriff and fingerless gloves on her hands, her burgundy hair cut short and styled into wildness. The tree that she stood against was old and twisted, moss creeping up its trunk as its branches stuck out like arms. Lost in the leaves of one branch was a bird's nest, and in it was a clock. The tree looked completely out of place, just as the woman had, among the concrete buildings and slate colored sky, smog rolling through the alleys.

* * *

**Sharin: **Why are you ending there?

**Riayu: **Because I can? And it seems like a good place to end to me.

**Psy: **You might be an idiot. How is that a good place to end? I'm staring at a picture!

**Riayu: **Hey! Don't you give me your sass, or I'll make you regret it.

**Psy: **I'd like to see you try!

**Sharin: **Psy, you're an idiot.

**Riayu: **You all read that, right? She wants me to try. I can't be blamed for what happens to you. Right, reviews, please! If you do, I'll give you a magical box that instantly fills with your favorite kind of candy! Thanks so much for reading!


	3. A Widening Canyon

**Riayu: **I have an announcement to make to all of my readers. I WILL BE PUTTING THIS PIECE OF WORK ON HIATUS IF I DO NOT RECEIVE REVIEWS. I know I sound selfish and all, but seriously, this is ridiculous. I've gotten four. FOUR. Even Scars beat this. And Scars was my worst one. And you know what else; three of those four reviews were from consultants. Thank you to Tsuchi No Ankon for reviewing.

**Sharin: **You're being a little harsh.

**Riayu: **I'm speaking my mind. And for those of you who are either too lazy to sign in or don't have an account, guess what! I have the anonymous review activated! Feel free to review. And don't think "I'm sure someone else will." 'Cause I like hearing your opinions!

**Psy: **You're starting to beg.

**Riayu: **You just made it worse for yourself in the upcoming chapters. And, if you know anyone who read KABBS, please tell them that KIT is up so I don't have to PM every last one of them to let them know that KIT is up. Because I will.

**Sharin: **There's a threat for you.

**Riayu: **And for that, you're having a nervous breakdown today.

**Disclaimer: **Still a good thing I don't own Naruto, look at what would happen if I didn't get feedback.

* * *

Too much sex and studying makes Sasuke a sleepy boy. He was cutting it close for his algebra class, mostly because he had fallen asleep in business, which was because he was up until four in the morning 'doing his homework'. Two of those hours were sex with Naruto, another three were devoted to a date, which led up to the sex, so he had only gotten four hours of sleep before classes started. As he settled in his seat, Sasuke began to wonder if it had been smart to sign up for so many classes that he was in school until eight every night. He hardly ever had time to study, and some of his early tests were starting to reflect it.

Naruto, on the other hand, was prospering. Only the bare necessities and a cooking class, because he "wanted to make what he loved for a living". It was frustrating as hell to see a dimwit excelling when he was struggling.

_Whoa there,_ Sasuke thought as his teacher began to lecture. _No need to be so mean to Naruto. It's good that he's doing well. I should be happy for him. _But what he should have been and what he was were two completely different things. Half way through the lesson, Sasuke was asleep, dreaming of getting hundreds on his tests and getting offers from other colleges to transfer. He didn't wake up until someone nudged him and told him class was over.

_Right. Lunch break. _He sighed and hefted his bag, walking out of the building and into the light of the day. Naruto was waiting outside.

"Hey, Sasuke. How was class, you look tired," Naruto said, smiling as he fell into step beside Sasuke.

"I am tired. I was up late doing homework, remember?" he asked, glaring at the happy blonde.

"Oh yeah, sorry about that. I fell asleep, so I wasn't much help, was I?" he rubbed the back of his head, smiling as if everything was okay.

"Hn," Sasuke grunted, anger flaring up inside of him.

"What do you want to do for lunch today?" Naruto asked, not seeming to sense Sasuke's anger. "I think I'm tired of the cafeteria food. Wanna go for ramen?"

"I don't like ramen around here very much," Sasuke lied. "You can go if you want to. I think I'll try to get some more sleep. I'm really tired."

"Okay, Sasuke. Want me to come and get you at two so you can get to your next class?" Naruto looked at the brunette, worry clear on his face.

"No, I'll set the alarm clock," Sasuke said tersely. He turned away from Naruto and walked towards the edge of campus where the apartment complex they were staying in sat. The minute his head touched the pillow, Sasuke was out like a light. His sleep was so heavy that the clock took a while to work on him, and he managed to sleep through it for five minutes before he sat up and turned it off. He quickly ran a brush through his hair and ran out the door and over to the elevator, tapping his foot impatiently as he waited for the electronic ding that announced that he was on the ground level.

He managed to stay awake for his statistics class, cruised through second business class, slept through half of his free hour, doing homework for the other half, then rushed off to his music class. He hated that they had to take some sort of cultures class for freshman year, it did nothing for him. On the way to class he got himself a can of high-caffeine soda and chugged it as he took his seat in the back of the class.

"Pop quiz!" the professor announced, smiling broadly. "Clear your desks and take out a pencil!" she sang as she walked up and down the rows, placing a paper on each student's desk. Sasuke stared down at his, panic turning his mouth to cotton as he read the paper and saw nothing but letters that blurred together in nonsensical patterns. He answered three questions, guessed on another four, and left the last three blank. He turned it in, earned a skeptical eyebrow from the teacher, and sat back down, putting his head on his desk.

Naruto was outside the building again when class ended, smiling that stupid smile again.

"Hi, Sasuke! How was class?"

"Bad." Sasuke said, already walking. Naruto had to jog to catch up.

"I'm sorry. Want me to help?" Naruto asked kindly, trying to catch Sasuke's hand in his.

"No, I'll be fine on my own. We won't be able to go out today, though." He didn't sound the least bit sorry.

"Okay, no problem. School work is important. Maybe I'll study, or I could make dinner," he smiled at the prospect and waited for Sasuke's okay.

"I'm not very hungry; I don't think I'll be eating today." Realizing that Naruto was still trying to hold his hand, Sasuke reached up and gripped the shoulder strap of his bag as if to keep it from falling off of his shoulder.

"Oh…okay then. I'll leave you alone so you can work in piece. I'll ask Psy and Gaara if they want anything. I'll need some money to get groceries."

"You know where I keep it," Sasuke said, opening the door to the building, not bothering to hold it for Naruto like he usually did. The result was that Naruto walked into the glass door, stumbled back, rubbed his nose in confusion, then opened the door and walked inside.

"Is something the matter, Sasuke?" Naruto asked, trying to catch up to the brunette, but the elevator doors were already closed, and he was left standing in the foyer alone. He pressed the up button, wiping his eyes a little as he waited, trying to banish the collecting tears.

"Naruto, that you?" The blonde turned his head to see Gaara approaching, his arms filled with books.

"Hey, Gaara," he smiled falsely and offered to help Gaara with his books.

"You okay?" Gaara asked, frowning a little as he noticed the redness at the corner of the blonde' blue eyes.

"Sasuke's a little cranky and it's making me a little depressed. Nothing to worry about," he tried to smile again, but it came out looking like a mirror that had been punched: broken and empty. "Want ramen for dinner tonight?" he asked, stepping into the elevator as the doors opened.

"Sure, is beef okay? Or would you rather make shrimp?"

"Depends on what Psy wants. She's still pretty upset, so I think we'll have what she wants."

"I think she ended up giving Zetsu a black eye today 'cause he wouldn't leave her alone." The elevator lurched to a stop and the doors opened, both of them stepping out together. Naruto allowed Gaara to get the door for him, smiling.

"I wouldn't be surprised; she's had a short temper since the incident," Gaara added.

"What incident?" Psy asked, pausing on her way to the kitchen. "Who are we talking about?"

"The art teacher. Someone spilled paint all over the floor and it got on her favorite shirt, so she was freaking out on everyone."

"Sounds like fun," Psy said, looking at Naruto. "What's up, blondie?"

"Sasuke's mad and it's a little depressing."

"I've been mad since yesterday and you weren't depressed."

"Want ramen?" Naruto asked, setting the books down on the table of the dining room.

"Sure, why not. Chicken's good with me," she smiled. "Why the hell do you have so many books with you today, Gaara?"

"I like to read and look at the pictures. They're all art books," he opened one to show a picture of the Mona Lisa. "Why're you in such a good mood today?"

"Hmm? Oh, I got to see a painter develop their picture. It's coming out really nicely, and she likes mine a lot too. Art class cheers me up a lot of the time."

"Good for you," Naruto said, going into the living room and opening a box that held three checkbooks and four credit cards. I found the one with his name on it, put it in his wallet, then tossed his light bag on the couch. "I'm going to the store to pick up stuff for dinner. What do you want for dessert?"

"Jello!" Psy shouted. "Cherry if you can find it." Naruto nodded, lifting his hand in a farewell wave before going back out into the hallway and pressing the down button on the elevator. He hummed idly as he waited, then hummed with the generic elevator music playing while he descended to the ground level. Outside the wind had picked up and he wrapped his sweatshirt tighter around him as he bustled to the main street, hailing a taxi. He was about to open the door when a pale hand reached out and did it for him.

"I figured you shouldn't go to the supermarket alone." Naruto sat in the car, scooting over to provide his companion with a seat. The minute the cab started moving they were glued at the lips, a feeling of lust and desperation filling Naruto, and slowly, steadily, guilt filtered in as well.

* * *

**Sharin: **Well, that was short.

**Riayu: Glaring **I feel bad, 'cause I'm punishing some of my friends. Sorry Rob, Nate, and Dave. You don't deserve this. Not your fault. And sorry Shawn. (these people reviewed after I started writing the chapter). Maybe I'll send you guys the next chapter early. I'll need your email, Shawn.

**Psy: **Don't you think you're being a little harsh?

**Riayu: **Yes, I do. But apparently being a hard ass is the only thing that's gonna get anything done here. So, everyone, tell anyone you know that read KABBS to read this, or tell a friend. I need feedback.

**Sharin: **Aren't you going to give out cookies or something?

**Riayu: **Cookies for Rob, Nate, Dave, Shawn, Sye216, AkcessedImagination, and Tsuchi No Ankon.

**Psy: **You named everyone you're giving cookies to? Jeez, you really are upset. Right, I'm going to go put her down for her nap, everyone.


	4. A Proposal

**Riayu: **I gots me a trophy! Behold its glory! **Holding up gold and platinum plated trophy **Thanks very much Shawn! You've earned a free plushie! **Pushes a Sasori plushie through the screen **I hope Sasori's okay. Lemme know if you want someone else instead.

**Psy: **Someone's in a better mood. Might I ask why?

**Riayu: **I dunno. I'm a naturally happy person?

**Itachi: **She's probably plotting to kill one of us.

**Riayu: **Uhh….not yet. Although I often do kill my favorite characters in the stuff I write. You might want to write your will, Itachi.

**Kaki: **Kill him and I'll rip you limb from limb.

**Riayu: **You're dead, you can't be here. **Pushes her out of the room**

**Disclaimer: **I think that we all know that I don't own Naruto.

* * *

"Nanotechnology one-oh-one," said the professor of Itachi's nanotech class. He was tall with spiky orange hair and so many piercings that his face must have looked like Swiss cheese without them in. "Helping stalkers for the past twenty years." A few people laughed. Someone put their hand in the air.

"Why do you have so many piercings?" a girl from the back of the class asked.

"What piercings? These are all inventions of mine." The man said, reaching up and pulling out one of his nose 'rings'. "This is a miniature tracking device. It's hooked up to the computer at my house so that I know where it is if I ever lose it."

"Professor Pein is it really appropriate for you to be wearing all of those in class?" the same girl asked.

"I don't see why not. These are all examples of what nanotechnology can do. Ask another question and you'll have to answer one of mine." The girl's hand, which had been in the air, slowly slid back down to rest on her desk. "Good. Now, how many of you are here to try to develop inventions of your own to sell?" Most of the hands in the room went up. "How many of you are here in hopes of getting employed in an electronics company and help develop new technologies to sell?" All but one hand was up.

"Brooding boy with the pony tail," Pein said, walking around the edge of his desk to sit on it. "You didn't raise your hand. Why are you here?"

"To learn about nanotechnology," Itachi said in monotone.

"And why do you want to learn about nanotechnology?"

"Because people that go to casinos often buy nanotechnology objects from black markets that allow them to cheat the machines. I want to learn how to make something that can combat said nanotech."

"A very noble reason. Your parents own a casino?"

"I own a casino." Pein arched an eyebrow.

"That's quite the accomplishment for someone who's still in college. What's your name?"

"Uchiha Itachi," he stared straight back at the teacher, whose eyes had widened in surprise. Murmurs rippled through the room before Pein called for quiet and started detailing the curriculum.

"I assume that at least an eighth of you will fail or quit this class by the end of the semester. This is a grueling course, so be prepared. By the end of the semester you will have made prototypes for your first invention. That will be your final, and your grade will depend on how many flaws I see in it." He went on to lecture for a while, drawing simplistic sketches on the board before passing out papers with full details. The paper that he gave Itachi had a note on it.

_Meet me at the end of class. I have something I want to discuss with you. _Itachi sighed and doodled on the paper, half-listening to Pein's lecture. When class was ended Itachi stayed in his seat, waiting for everyone to filter out of the room before shoving the paper into his bag and standing up.

"Please close the door, Itachi," Pein said, sitting behind his desk and writing something on a piece of paper. Itachi did as he was told, a little confused.

"What do you need? I have lunch now and there's someone I have to go talk to," Itachi said, a little impatient. He turned to face Pein and found a pair of silken lips against his. He was frozen there, his eyes wide as his teacher kissed him. He only responded when he felt the flick of a tongue against his upper lip. He opened his mouth and allowed Pein passage, surprised when he felt something blunt slide over his tongue, Pein's tongue piercing. Fingers tangled in hair as Pein pulled Itachi closer, their kiss becoming an animal of lust. Itachi was the first to pull away, his breath coming in pants.

"We shouldn't be doing this," he said, gasping when he felt Pein rake his teeth up his neck. "It's not allowed for a teacher and a pupil."

"But you haven't pushed me away, so you must want it too," Pein said, the smirk clear in his voice as he bit Itachi's ear, eliciting a gasp. He then pulled away, watching Itachi with a look of amusement. "I'll let you think my offer through. I want an answer by next class." And he left, leaving Itachi to calm and collect himself before getting his bag and leaving as well.

"You've been kissing someone," Sharin said the moment she saw him. "Your upper lip is a little swollen."

"I fell," he lied, looking away from her.

"I have trouble imagining the great Uchiha Itachi falling on his face." She smiled. "Kuro wants to see you again, he said you were nice. Maybe you and your friends would like to come over for dinner?"

"Which friends?" Itachi asked. "Zetsu's been a little…angry lately, and my brother is wrapped up in school work.

"Then why not bring over Naruto, Suki, and Gaara?"

"Is it okay if I bring one other person? He's been dying to meet you since Gaara told him about Kuro."

"Sure, who is it? Another senior?"

"Yeah, his name is Sasori. He's Gaara's cousin, so they look a little alike."

"Sounds like fun. Mom's not going to be here today because she's out with some friends for the week, so we can have barbecue if you want. Kuro loves barbecue."

"Sounds good to me. I'll go tell everyone about our plans. You're going home now?"

"Yeah, today's classes are over. I'll take Kuro out to shop for food. Is seven good for you?"

"Perfect," Itachi said with a small smile. Sharin smiled back and turned away, going down the path lined with Sakura trees that they had first met on. He turned and started walking towards the cafeteria, rubbing his upper lip thoughtfully as he walked. The prospect of dating a teacher was enticing. The danger that such a relationship would contain only proved to make it all the more interesting.

"You're in a good mood today," Suki said, smiling at Itachi. "Talked to Sharin again?"

"She invited us over for dinner. You wanna come?"

"Sure, I've got nothing better to do. Tobi's got work again. It sucks, dating someone who's a little too responsible. Work then studying, and by the time he's done he has no energy left for me."

"Maybe you should talk to him about it," Itachi suggested, sitting across from her.

"I've tried, he fell asleep halfway through my speech. Three times. I've given up!"

"Congratulations, way to be optimistic and keep trying, no matter what the hardships are." Suki winced as she grabbed a cupcake, a burger, and a carton of milk.

"Don't use my own words against me. That was to help you deal with your loss."

"You know this makes you a hypocrite, right." She threw a wrapped muffin at him, hitting him in the middle of the chest.

"Looks like Sasuke and Tobi have more in common than we thought," Suki said, changing the subject suddenly. "Look at them. Who studies during lunch break?" The two of them were sitting at a circular table; books spread out everywhere as they ate sandwiches and read their notes or did homework. "It makes my brain hurt."

"What brain?" Itachi asked, earning a punch in the arm. "I'm just teasing."

"And I'm just about ready to rip your head off. What's your point?"

"There's a girl with weird eyes staring at you, and particular reason why?" Itachi asked, looking at a table where a girl sat with blue-tinted hair and lavender eyes.

"Huh, oh her? She's been following me since I saved her from some punk who was calling her a worthless piece of shit. She's pretty nice, real shy, though. I like her, she's cute."

"Pedophile," Itachi said with a smirk.

"She's over eighteen, therefore, I am not a pedophile."

"Wait…did you," he looked at the girl again then back at Suki.

"No! Hell no! She's cute and nice, but…I've got Tobi," Suki paused, a little uncertain. "I'm going to go eat lunch with her. The kid who was picking on her is in here, and I don't want him to bother her again. He has a serious stick up his ass." She turned her back on him before he could say anything else and walked over to the table where the girl sat.

"Hey Hinata," Suki said, smiling as she sat down.

"He-hello Suki-sempai," Hinata said, looking down at her hands.

"Didn't I tell you to just call me Suki? Sempai sounds weird with my name."

"Yes," Hinata said, still looking down at her hands. "S-Suki?"

"Hmm?" She looked at the girl, still smiling, and noted the redness of her face. "You okay, kid? Your face looks like a tomato."

"I-" she stopped, putting her head down on the table.

"Hey, you okay?" Suki asked, lifting Hinata's head and putting her hand on the girl's forehead. "You're burning up. Want me to take you to the nurse."

"N-no, I'm okay!" She said, smiling a little. "I wanted to thank you for saving me from my cousin."

"You've already thanked me about ten times. You don't have to keep thanking me."

"You don't understand," Hinata said, her eyes wide and sincere. "Standing up to him is like standing up to my whole family!"

"I'm glad I could help?" Suki shrugged a shoulder. "It really was no big deal. Besides, I've got a new friend now." She leaned over and wrapped her arms around Hinata, smiling when she felt the heat of Hinata's face caused by her blush.

"Something wrong, Hinata?" Suki asked, her smile turning a little shy.

"N-no, I-I just…" Hinata stammered, her blush deepening.

"Oh, look at that. I have to go, Hinata. Sorry. But hey, I'll talk to you later, okay?" Suki and Hinata both stood and Suki gave Hinata a final hug before turning and leaving the cafeteria.

"You're bringing a puppet with you, Sasori?" Suki asked, arching an eyebrow at Sasori, who was carrying a small present bag.

"Kids like toys," Sasori said in monotone. Even though he sounded as apathetic as always, Suki noticed the slightest curve to the corner of his mouth.

"You like kids, huh?" She asked, smiling at him. "Or do you wanna score points with mama?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about. My mom always told me that it's rude to go to someone's house without bringing something, and I know more about kids than I do about girls."

"Itachi's been spouting about this girl nonstop; there must have been something that you could have gotten her."

"From what Itachi's been saying I've determined that she really loves her son, and he's the most important person to her. Therefore, I'm giving her a gift by giving the boy a gift."

"So you are after points with mama," Suki smiled hugely, jumping away when Sasori tried to punch her. "You're just upset 'cause I figured you out.

"Would you guys quiet down, you'll wake the whole neighborhood!" Naruto said, glancing over his shoulder at the two of them.

"Naruto, it's six in the afternoon, no one's sleeping," Suki pointed out, sticking her tongue out. "You're just upset 'cause I'm having fun."

"And you're upset 'cause the kid likes me more," Naruto shot back instantly. Suki murmured something about hating blonde boys because they were idiots.

"Here we are!" Itachi announced when they were at the house. "Behave, okay, you guys?"

"Why do you always act like we'll burn the place down?" Naruto asked, pretending to be hurt.

"Because you would probably mess up the grill and do just that," Gaara said lightly.

"I hate you," Naruto said through his teeth.

"Mean words will get you no dessert in this house!" Sharin announced as she opened the door. "Being a bad influence as always, Naruto?" She asked, smiling at him.

"She's only known me for a few days, why is she allowed to be so mean to me?"

"She's not being mean, she's being blunt," Sasori said, smiling a little. "I'm Sasori."

"Gaara's cousin, right? You two look alike, but your eyes are different, 'Sori. C'mon in, everyone! Kuro is running around in the backyard with the neighbor's dog."

"She gets familiar with people fast, doesn't she?" Sasori murmured as they made their way through the house.

"Yeah, but she also hates talking to people. It's a little weird," Naruto muttered back, smiling. "She's cool, though. And her food's good."

"Kuro, come meet Sasori." The child ran over to Sasori, his black eyes sparkling.

"I brought you a present," Sasori said, squatting down and taking the puppet out of the bag. It was a dog with complex interior design that allowed the strings to come out of its back instead of its actual limbs, creating a realistic look when it moved.

"Cool!" Kuro said, taking it and playing with the strings, squealing in delight when the dog moved in his lap.

"Did you make that?" Sharin asked, smiling as she began to set the picnic table.

"Yeah, I did it during art class over the past few days."

"That's strange, I've never seen you in the studio. Then again, I'm only in there for fourth and fifth block. When do you have class?"

"Seventh block. You're a freshman, right? Which painting is yours?"

"Can't tell you that, it's not done yet. I'll tell you in a few days." She smiled, took some of the meat from the barbecue pit, and put it on a large plate. "Dinner's ready! Sit down to eat, everyone!"

* * *

**Sharin: Muttering to Psy**

**Riayu: **Yes, I will be exacting revenge on you, Sharin. I'll take my time, though. Don't worry your little head, it'll come.

**Sharin: **Ah, shit!

**Psy: **Told you she'd hear you.

**Itachi: **You aren't going to kill me, are you?

**Riayu: **That's a good question. Here's a question for people who decide to review (yes, all five of you) Who thinks I'll kill Itachi?

**Sharin: **Oh dear god. You know people are going to beg, right?

**Riayu: **I'm sorry, is there a point to that remark? Anyways, that's the chapter for now. Thanks for reading! And thank you to my few reviewers. Sorry you had to be punished. Please, please, review. I require feed back. I want ten this time, please. That's not that many. Please!

**Psy: **Candy for all who reviewed! **Passing out huge boxes of candy**


	5. A Blossom of Truth

**Riayu: **I AM SO SORRY! I know I took forever to update! And I didn't mean to, even though I never did get those ten reviews. My laptop broke so I had to send it to Dell and I just got it back. Then there was some minor writer's block.

**Psy: **Would you stop making up excuses and just write the damned chapter?

**Sharin: **Someone's cranky. Why's that?

**Riayu: **'Cause I'm getting my revenge today, an she's not looking forward to it. She knows I'ma make her regret ever being mean to me. Oh, and, I love the diamond, Shawn! **Pushes button on the trophy, revealing a diamond **It's shiny!

**Psy: **My god, you're a freaking crow. Shiny, must abduct and put it in my nest.

**Riayu: **You just made it so much worse for yourself. Congratulations!

**Disclaimer: **I still don't own Naruto!

* * *

_Looks like I gave her a good bruise. _Psy thought as she looked over at the girl with the crazy-colored hair. _Serves her right for, WHAT THE HELL?! _The girl, who had been drawing in her notebook, looked up and smiled.

"What are you looking at?" Psy hissed, cracking her knuckles.

"I'm looking at you, Psy." She whispered back, still smiling.

"How do you know my name?" Psy asked, going rigid when the teacher gave her a stern look. The girl shrugged a shoulder and, when the teacher had turned back to the board, passed Psy her notebook. Psy stared at it for a long time before realizing what exactly she was looking at. She was lying on the floor, the flesh protecting her stomach torn out and strange metal objects poking into her organs. She turned the page and found a drawing of a dead Hidan. Class ended and Psy threw the notebook at the girl.

"I don't know what you did to get Itachi on your side, but you're just a creep as far as I'm concerned. I don't even want to know where you got that information from. But don't talk to me any more." Psy hissed before jogging out of the room.

"There she is!" Someone yelled and, before Psy understood what was going on, she was on the ground.

"Hi Psy!" Suki shouted, smiling widely. "How was Biology?"

"Why were you outside of my building?" Psy asked, not bothering to struggle in Suki's firm grasp.

"I'm stalking a freshman, and I was hoping she might be here. Her name's Hintata."

"I know who you're talking about. She'll be out soon. She's in my class." Suki squealed a little, then jumped up and ran into the crowd of people still streaming from the building, emerging again as she pulled Hinata behind her. Psy waved as they walked away before running off to her graphic designs class. It was halfway through the class that she remembered that she would chem. lab again. Her lab partner seemed to have dropped the class, leaving it with an odd number. It was just her luck that the teacher had paired her with the student teacher.

"You're the smartest kid here, I think it's an even match," her teacher had said as if it was an honor to be paired with the abusive asshole. Graphic design was over far too fast for Psy's liking and she found herself next to Kimimaro at her perfectly cleaned lab station. He smiled at her and she shivered in response, sweeping her black hair back into a neat ponytail before gathering the equipment they would need for the lab as he measured out the chemicals they would use. Soon the room was full of the smell of burning propane, boiling solutions, and sitting mixtures. Psy leaned against the wall behind their lab station, watching as Kimimaro scribbled notes in his notebook.

"Aren't you going to write down the observations?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder at her.

"If I were writing down observations, I might miss something. It'll be there when I write the lab, don't worry." She pasted on a fake smile before pushing herself away from the wall and stirring a mixture with a glass thermometer. "It also lets me see when we've made a small error. The lab says to stir this every five minutes to make sure there's a proper mixture. Don't let the flakes settle or they'll bind." She smiled at his frustrated look. "Or didn't you understand the lab?"

"Of course I understood the lab! I'm the one with a degree in chemistry."

"Could've fooled me. You handle this equipment like you have rigor mortis." He had a confused look and she could hold back the burst of laughter that bubbled out. "You're a college graduate, you want to be a teacher, and you don't know what rigor mortis is? My god! I pity those poor students that you might have in the future. They'll come out dumber than they went in. By the way, your sleeve's on fire," she pointed to the sleeve of his lab coat, which had made contact with the Bunsen burner and caught fire. Kimimaro began to panic, waving his arm about until Psy took a small fire blanket and threw it on his arm, patting it down.

"Smooth," she said, pulling it away and opening a first aid kit, pulling out salve and a bandage. "You can do that yourself, I'm going to the bathroom. Just don't touch anything until I get back. I'll leave you in charge of the mixture, make sure those flakes don't settle. Think you can handle that?" Psy didn't wait for an answer before turning and walking out of the room, jogging down the hallway to the bathroom. When she returned to the chemistry room a few minutes later she stopped in the doorway, staring at Kimimaro. He had moved her bag from the left side of their station to the right and there was something sticking out of it. She recognized it as the key to her apartment.

"What'd you touch my stuff for?" she asked when she was standing beside him.

"It was in the way, so I moved it," he pointed to where he had set up a filtration system. Psy watched the filter for a moment, then walked over and took the test tube where a little bit of residue was left behind.

"This is why I told you to just stir the flakes." She filled the tube halfway with water, swirled until all of the residue had been picked up, then poured it all into the filtration, adjusting the filtration tube so that the water flowed against the side of the beaker. She went back to observing the lab for the next five minutes, then did her share of cleaning up, trying her best to stay as far away from Kimimaro as possible.

"The period isn't over," Kimimaro said when Psy picked up her bag and began walking towards the door.

"I prefer finishing my lab information in the comfort of my home," she said icily, not bothering to look at him. "Have a nice day." She closed the door behind her and walked down the hall, welcoming the sunlight that greeted her outside. She bought a sandwich at the cafeteria and ate it on the way to the art studio, pausing in the doorway when she saw the figure at the easel with the painting she liked. She walked over and looked at the picture, where the last of details were being added. At the base of the gnarled tree there was a patch of grass with flowers that grew in bright patches around the roots, giving the dim ally a splash of color as lines of rain poured from the sky. Under the woman's feet there was concrete with a large crack running through it. Her eyes were closed, a look of serenity on her face.

"It's beautiful," Psy breathed, staring.

"The hands came out wrong," a familiar voice said, making Psy jump back.

"You! It can't be you!" Psy hissed, glaring at the back of the sweatshirt.

"Sorry to disappoint you," the hood slid down, revealing vivid red and blonde. "That's why I didn't want to fight you. I like your work, it's beautiful. People who have one thing in common, such as art, usually have many more." She turned in her chair, smiling at Psy. "I'm sorry that Itachi fought with you."

"Don't talk to me! I don't like you!" Psy said, her eyes turning to hard sapphires. "You and I are not friends; you and I have nothing in common; you are just some childish little bitch that can't stand to have one person hate you. And," she added as the girl took a step closer, "if you don't leave me alone, I will lay you out. Thank you very much." She smiled, turned on her heel, and walked over to her easel, pulling out her paint brush and running it along the canvas, watching as color erupted. Class started and ended too quickly. Psy sat at her easel for a few moments longer, painting a few extra details on the wildflowers she was painting. She washed her hands to free them of paint, then walked out of the room, letting her hair out of its ponytail.

"Chemistry lab to type, biology worksheets, and algebra problems, fun," she murmured to herself as she made her way to the library. She was sitting on one of the couches, digging around in her bag, when she realized that her chemistry folder wasn't there. She sighed and ran her hand through her hair before lifting her bag onto her shoulder and walking back to the building where her chemistry room was. She looked into the window in the door, checking to see if there was anyone inside. It looked empty, all of the lights off, but when she tested the doorknob she found that it was unlocked. She stepped inside, the door swinging shut behind her of its own accord. She looked around the room, sighing in relief when she spotted her notebook on the counter on the far side of the room, sitting across from her lab station.

"How'd you end of over there?" Psy asked, jogging across the room to the station and picking up her notebook.

"Hello, Psy, so nice to see you," a chilling, familiar voice said, sending shivers up Psy's spine.

"What do you want, Kimimaro?" she asked, looking over her shoulder. He smiled, stepping closer to her.

"Just revenge. You thought you could make fun of me and get away with it?"

"Fuck you," she spat, turning to push him away.

"With pleasure," before she could do anything, he had her pressed against the counter, his forearm on her neck, blocking her air. "Don't move, Psy. I could accidently take this scalpel and cut you with it." He reached into a pocket and pulled out a pair of handcuffs, before forcing her onto her knees and linking her hands above her head, restraining them with one of the handles to the cabinets beneath the table.

"If you don't let me go, Kimi, I'll scream," Psy warned, pulling against the handcuffs.

"That can be fixed," Kimimaro said, smiling as he pulled out a gag, stuffing it into her mouth. She thrashed as he pulled up the hem of her skirt, trying to scream as he pulled down her panties.

"Stop acting like you don't want it," Kimimaro murmured, standing so he could unzip his pants. Psy thrashed more as she watched him stroke his member until it became erect. "Ready, Psy?" She shook her head wildly, screaming and thrashing as best she could. There was a sharp pain between her thighs and she flailed harder, trying to pull away.

"Dammit, Psy, stop moving. You're making this difficult," Kimimaro hissed, cuffing her roughly across the face. When she didn't comply, he hit her harder. And when she still refused to do what she was told, he hit her until she dropped into unconsciousness.

* * *

"I think she's waking up," a child's voice said from somewhere in the mist that kept the ache in Psy's head a constant. She groaned and threw her arms across her eyes, becoming acutely aware of another place that was aching.

"Psy? Can you here me?" the voice sounded familiar, and it made hate bubble in Psy's stomach.

"Get away, you little bitch," Psy groaned, trying to move away from the voice.

"Psy, you shouldn't move. You're safe now. We've got samples of the guy's DNA who did this to you. We'll find him and he'll be punished."

"I already know who did it, dumbass," Psy said, finally opening her eyes. There were two shocks of the strange colored hair, one atop the girl and the other atop a boy with black eyes. He smiled at her warmly, reaching out to dip the washcloth on her head in some cool water, putting it back to her feverish face in an instant.

"The doctor's say threw was a lot of torn tissue and a lot of bruising. You shouldn't move very much for now. They said that it'll be okay to move by Monday."

"What's today?" Psy asked, running a hand through her hair.

"It's Thursday. I'll get one of your friends to collect your work for you if you want," Sharin smiled. "The doctor's said you shouldn't be moved, so you'll have to stay here."

"Where is here?" Psy sat up a little, wincing at the pain the shift caused. Around her were warmly painted walls and happy photos.

"This is my mother's house. You're on her couch right now. She'll take care of you while I'm at school. I'll keep notes for you in biology class, okay? But you should get some rest, unless you're hungry.

"Not in the least," Psy growled, lying back down and closing her eyes, trying to shut out the little that she could remember of the rape.

* * *

**Psy: **I hate you so much!

**Riayu: **Revenge is a wonderful thing.

**Sharin: **That was a little harsh.

**Riayu: **Please. It serves the plot nicely. You're the one who signed up for this.

**Psy: **I didn't know I would get raped so many times.

**Riayu: **It was in your contract. Thanks so much for reading, guys! Reviews are much appreciated! Candy for all, and for all a good night! **Passes out boxes of chocolate**


	6. Guilt

**Riayu: **No, my computer is not back. I've decided that, because my computer will be gone for an unknown amount of time, I might as well write KIT in my notebook and type it at the school computers. Everyone make sure to thank Sye216 for agreeing to post these for me. DO IT! Also, she'll be taking over A/Ns for a while.

**Psy: **Oh. Oh god.

**Sye: **That's right! From now on you have to do what _I _say! **evil laughter**

**Sharin: **Someone shoot me now and get it over with.

**Sye: **Honestly, as much as I'd love to, Riayu'd probably murder me for that.

**Psy: **Or give you a bunch of money as a reward.

**Sye: **Hmmm….

**Sharin: **Go on. Try it. I dare ya.

**Sye: **Don't tempt me with a good time.

**Psy: **As much as I'm enjoying watching you two threaten each other, I think we should actually get on with the story.

**Sye: **NOVEL IDEA! I'll get right on it.

**Disclaimer: **Riayu doesn't own Naruto, and Sye216 doesn't either. The series would be much more interesting if they did.

Sasuke was awakened in the middle of the night by a quiet ringing. He rolled onto his side, crawling up from the deep hole of sleep he had fallen into, creating the illusion that the ringing was getting louder. He sat up and got out of bed, walking into the kitchen to take the phone from its hook.

"Hello?" he asked, his voice husky with sleep.

"Oh! Sasuke! Hi, this is Sharin. I didn't expect you to answer the phone. Uh, I have Psy over here."

"Okay?" Sasuke rubbed his eyes then paused. "Doesn't she hate you?"

"Yeah… There was a mishap in Chemistry. She's, uh, in a lot of pain. She'll be over here for a while, until Monday, probably. You guys can come over and visit if you want.

"What happened?" he asked, staring absently at the microwave.

"I'd rather not say. If you come over I'm sure she'll explain."

"Okay, take good care of her. Night." He hung up the phone and looked at the microwave again. Why had she waited to call until three in the morning?

"What's wrong, Sasuke?" Naruto asked, walking cautiously from the shadows.

"Nothing," Sasuke said dismissively, slipping past Naruto and out of the kitchen.

"Who called?" Naruto asked, watching the away Sasuke's jaw tightened in frustration.

"Sharin. Psy's hurt and she's taking care of her." Naruto opened his mouth to ask what had happened, but the look that Sasuke gave him silenced him. "Good night, Naruto." He said icily.

Naruto stood there, watching as Sasuke disappeared into their bedroom. There was a distinct burning behind his eyes and a heavy weight in his stomach as he shuffled over to the couch in the living-room and curled up, pulling a blanket around his shoulder and knees as he wept quietly. He had been sitting there for only a few minutes when a familiar pair of arms wrapped around him.

"It'll be okay, Naruto," Gaara whispered, letting Naruto nestle his wet face in his night shirt. Naruto noted the slight scent he found there: warm and spicy, but not overwhelmingly so. Naruto found comfort in the scent as he curled against Gaara, allowing him to stroke his hair and murmur soft comforting words.

"Thank you Gaara," Naruto whispered after a few silent moments.

"No problem. I'm glad I could help," the small smile at the edge of Gaara's lips made Naruto's tear-streaked face lighten.

"Mind if I spend the night with you? I really don't think spending the night on the couch will be too comfortable." Gaara chuckled and nodded, standing up before pulling Naruto to his feet. Gaara ushered him into his room and slid into bed, making sure to leave plenty of room for the blonde.

Naruto was asleep within minutes, slowly but surely snuggling closer to Gaara, nestling innocently against him. Gaara stayed as still as a statue, staring down at the tuft of blonde below his chin. Almost without thinking, he began to stroke the silky blond nest. Naruto made a soft crooning sound in his sleep, snuggling ever closer. Gaara couldn't help thinking of the night that he had first borne the guilty feeling building in his stomach. Naruto had been going to the store, looking dejected because Sasuke was too busy being wrapped up in himself. So Gaara had run after the blonde to console him and keep him company. He hadn't meant to kiss Naruto, it had just happened. But now the urge was building again, this powerful need to press his lips against the silken pink pair that he could already taste.

"Naruto?" Gaara whispered, his voice hoarser with want. "Naruto, can you hear me?"

"Mm?" Naruto groaned, angling his head so that he could look at Gaara with bleary eyes.

"Naruto," Gaara swallowed his fear, staring into those beautiful eyes. "Can I kiss you?"

Naruto's eyes opened wide, his stomach gurgling with a nervous excitement. He licked his lips, then nodded a little. Gaara's lips smoothed over his in an instant, warm and eager. Their lips moved together until Gaara slid his tongue into Naruto's mouth. Naruto ran his tongue over Gaara's before pulling away, his breath coming in pants as tears rolled down his face, the guilt clear in his eyes.

"I'm sorry," Naruto said, his voice strangled with a sob. "I'm so sorry," and Gaara knew the apology wasn't for him.

"Go to sleep, Naruto. It'll be better in the morning. I promise." Naruto fell asleep crying, and, when Naruto had finally quieted down, Gaara's eyes began to leak.

"I've never seen you this determined, Sasori," Gaara said, looking at his cousin across the table from him in the cafeteria. "You really want her that badly?"

"Yes," Sasori said, looking as indifferent as ever. "I just don't know what to do next. She doesn't seem like a flowers girl, or chocolates, or someone who could be serenaded."

"Good thing, you can't sing for you're life. That's always been Temari's field. Why do you want her so badly anyways?" Gaara asked, poking at the brown peas on his plate.

"There's something intriguing about a woman with no past."

"Would've thought the kid would bother you. That means she must have slept around before she lost her memory."

"She could have been raped; it seems to be a growing epidemic as of late. That could have even caused the loss of memory."

"You're the weirdest person I know." Gaara chuckled then sobered. "Apparently Psy is at Sharin's house. I guess she was hurt badly and Sharin found her. We were thinking of going over to visit and see how she's doing. Do you want to come with us?"

"Sure. I just need to come up with a way to win her over." Sasori sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.

"Why don't you go down to the art studio and look at her work. Girls love compliments." Sasori nodded and threw out his garbage before jogging out of the cafeteria. Gaara shook his head, smiling as he looked around the cafeteria, looking for a source of entertainment. Sasuke and Tobi were studying, Suki was talking to a girl with weird eyes, and Itachi was nowhere to be seen. Gaara glanced at his watch then threw his trash away before jogging out of the cafeteria and down the walkway that led to the library. The air was colder than it had been, fall finally rolling onto campus as September began to fade away.

Naruto was inside the library, bent over a text book as he scribbled down numbers and letters, creating a strange sort of alphabet soup.

"Naruto? You having trouble?" Gaara asked, sitting down beside the blonde. Naruto looked up and smiled.

"Do you understand any of this?" He asked, budging the notebook over to Gaara.

"Yeah. Why? Don't you remember when Kaki taught it to us in high school?"

"Repressed memories," Naruto murmured, scratching his head as he took the notebook back and stared in confusion.

"There's a common variable that you can factor out," Gaara said, pointing at the page. Naruto smiled at him gratefully before turning back to the paper and scribbling through the steps.

"Thanks, Gaara," Naruto said, closing the book and notebook before shoving both into his bag.

"No problem. I'm always happy to help." Gaara's smile faltered when he saw the pain in the blonde's eyes. "C'mon, let's go take a walk." He stood up and held his hand out, helping Naruto up. The blonde smiled hesitantly, allowing Gaara to lead him outside and down a path that cut through the sakura trees, which slowly segued into a regular forest. Once in the shadows of the tall pines, poplars, maples, and oaks, Gaara turned and fastened his lips to Naruto's, tasting his honey-sweet lips and soft, supple tongue, and the strange bitterness of guilt that mixed between the two of them. There was no love in the kissing, in the caressing of cheeks and lips, it was all need. The way they crushed close together with their lips and arms and legs - which would often be mistaken for an attempt to make the love held within to something tangible - was really only an attempt to keep the other from falling apart.

Naruto wasn't sure were the sadness on Gaara's lips came from, or why he tasted of both their guilt when the redhead was doing nothing more than helping a friend release some of his frustration and need.

"Gaara!" the blonde gasped when they finally pulled away for breath. He was backed against the trunk of an old pine, the light coming in muffled so that it was hard to see who was there. "Gaara, we can't…" but the need was there, strengthened by the loneliness in his heart. He was hot all over, his pants uncomfortably tight where they had once been loose. But Gaara didn't heed his word as he kissed down the blonde's neck, his hand sliding over the bulging section of pants, ghosting over it in a way that made Naruto buck his hips with want.

"Gaara," Naruto half hissed and half moaned. "Gaara, stop…" but there was no conviction in his voice, this was what he wanted badly. Release. Before he could utter another word that he didn't mean, Naruto felt his pants slip away and a foreign heat engulfed him. He threw his head back as Gaara flicked his tongue over the sensitive skin, sliding his lips up on the hilt as he hummed, making Naruto stiffen further in his mouth.

"Ga-Gaara," Naruto whimpered in a final attempt to stop him before he dissolved into a soft moan. Gaara bobbed his head back and forth, moaning as well. He reached up with one hand and pressed the spot between the blonde's balls and anus, smiling in satisfaction when the blonde's hips bucked with pleasure. it was obvious how much Naruto had wanted it, longed for it for what he considered far too long, because the climax that came elicited a cream that he barely stifled by biting the palm of his hand. Gaara swallowed every drop, running his tongue up and down Naruto's member to collect anything that may have remained.

"Gaara," Naruto murmured, his eyes half-lidded and glazed with lust. "Gaara," there was a strange smile on his face, filled with mischief and longing that had nothing to do with love. Before Gaara could fully understand what the smile could possible mean, he was on his back and Naruto was on top of him, kissing his throat and collar bones.

"Naruto, don't," Gaara hissed, trying to push the blond away. "Stop it."

"You made me come, why shouldn't I return the favor? You're already hard," his tan hand slipped into Gaara's pants and squeezed the stiff flesh he found there. "You know you want it."

"No," Gaara could hardly squeeze the word out past the gasp he uttered. "You'll regret it later, when this all blows over. You'll regret this, I won't let you take that on your shoulders too." Naruto stared down at him, his eyes slowly widening in alarm as they filled with tears. He slid away from Gaara, pulling his pants up and zipping them as tears trailed down his cheeks.

"Thank you," Naruto whispered when Gaara sat beside him, wrapping him in a gentle hug, his own tears staining his eyes red.

"It was that Kimimaro guy from high school. The one that tried to kill Kaki," Psy's voice choked on her name. "He's the one who did this to me." She pointed to the bruises on her face from when he had knocked her out. "They're probably going to run a DNA test and try to mach it to him before he goes to court, as a sure way to win."

"How many times is this now?" Gaara asked. "Being raped, since you first met Kaki?"

"Uhh…three, if you count the past life she told me about. We never found out who did that, though."

"It's a miracle you haven't gotten pregnant yet," Sharin said, picking up Kuro and balancing him on her hip.

"Don't even joke about that," Psy said, her eyes hardening.

"We'd all die," Naruto said, putting on a mask of fear. "Waking up in the middle of the night because of the crying," He shuddered.

"What's 'pregnant' mean, mommy?" Kuro asked, staring up at his mother curiously.

"It's how babies are born. The baby grows in the mommy's stomach until it's big enough to come out." Kuro nodded and got a thoughtful look.

"Can I have a little sister?" Kuro asked, looking at her with shining eyes. Sharin smiled down at him, obviously trying to keep from laughing.

"Maybe one day, if I ever find a daddy for you," Sharin said, oblivious to the sudden somber atmosphere that was choking the air.

"When will you be back to school?" Itachi asked, looking down at Psy. She winced a little and glared up at him.

"What do you care?" she snapped, her face tightening in pain when she shifted.

"Natural human response to pain is sympathy and worry."

"Then you have no right to feel those things; you're a monster, nothing more, but plenty less."

"Please stop arguing," Sharin said, frowning at them as her eyes tightened a little around the corners. Sasori put a hand on her shoulder and she looked at him, trying to smile as her eyes lit with pain. Psy and Itachi were still snapping at each other, their voices slowly rising until they were shouting. Kuro slid from his mother's arms and ran from the room as the argument progressed.

"Shut up!" Sharin yelled, a vein pulsing in her temple. "You hate each other, we got it! You're giving me a headache!"

"I don't hate her, I just want her to stop blaming me fore Kaki's death," Itachi said, looking at her in surprise.

"I'm only blaming who I see fit to blame," Psy muttered.

"Stop it!" Sharin yelled, her face flushing. "She's dead, there's no point in blaming anyone. It won't bring her back. Did you ever think that maybe she would want you to forget about her and move on?"

"Why don't you shut up?" Psy snapped, turning her glare on Sharin. "You didn't know her! She wouldn't want us to forget her!"

"Well, I'm sure she wouldn't want you to hate each other just because she's gone. Are you stupid or something? If she could see you now how do you think she would feel? Seeing how much you hate him because she's gone, she'd probably kill herself over again, blaming herself for all of this strife." There was silence in the room, so long that it became awkward.

"Sorry about that," Sharin murmured after a few minutes, rubbing her temples. "What were you saying? I sort of zoned out." Everyone just stared at her. "What?" she asked, looking around. "Is there something on my face?"

**Psy: **Well, that…was an odd ending.

**Sharin: **Talk about awkward.

**Sye: **Don't look at me, I didn't write it.

**Psy: **Of course not. You're too lazy.

**Sye: **STFU. Anyway, remember to REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW!! It's what Riayu would want you to do. **sniffles**

**Sharin: **You make it sound like she's dead or something.

**Sye: **Uhh… uhh…uhh… I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING! I SWEAR!!

**Psy: sedates Sye**

**Sharin: **Right then. Guess I'll hand out the goodies. **Starts passing out random candies to reviewers**


	7. Decision

****

Riayu: Guess what, everyone! I've got my computer back! Guess what else! It's still broken!

Sharin: Why do I get the feeling you're not exactly thrilled with Dell?

Psy: Because she probably wants to kill them.

Riayu: How'd you know? Smiling But, oh well. I'll probably have to send it away _again _but I'm sure Sye would upload another chappie or two for me.

Sharin: Is she going to write the Author Note again? Shudders

Riayu: I was actually thinking about turning them over to her for a while anyways. They made me laugh.

Sharin: O.O NO!

Riayu: I hear a resounding yes.

Psy: You do realize that you're not a nice person, right?

Riayu: Of course.

Disclaimer: Guess what I don't own…Well, of course I don't own that, but guess what else I don't own. Guess again. Again. Okay, if you won't guess right then I'll just tell you, it's Naruto.

P.S. Name's and faces might get a little confusing in this chapter. There will be a link at the top of my page for reference to the names and faces of the different Peins.

* * *

"She's completely insane!" Suki yelled the minute she closed the door to the condo where Itachi, Tobi, Zetsu, and she stayed. "She must have split personality syndrome or something!" Zetsu looked up, scowling at her.

"Would you kindly shut up?" Itachi asked, rubbing his temples. "It's no bid deal. She gave us the verbal thrashing that we both deserved."

"She forgot about it! Come on! That's a little weird."

"What are you guys yelling about?" Zetsu asked, looking up from the bowl of cereal he was eating.

"We went to go visit," Itachi paused for a second, "a new friend and she yelled and Suki and I, then she forgot about it. No big deal." Itachi shot Suki a warning glance when she opened her mouth to correct him.

"I pity you, Sasori," she said instead, though she seemed to mean it. "You've got a crush on a psychopath."

"Crazy people are great in bed," Sasori said, seemingly unbothered.

"Sasori, you've got a one-track mind, don't you?" Itachi asked, shaking his head a little. "Don't eat all the cereal, Zetsu. We need that for breakfast too."

"It tastes like tree bark," Zetsu said, spooning more of the flaky cereal into his mouth.

"That's usually what bran flakes taste like," Itachi said, letting his hair out of its ponytail as he glanced at the clock on the wall. "Shit! I have to go, guys. I'm late for an interview."

"It's nine at night, where the hell are you getting an interview at?" Suki asked, giving him an incredulous look.

"The strip clubs open at eight," Sasori said, smiling a little.

"And that reminds me, I have to go too. I promised a friend I would help her study tonight," Suki said, running to her room and grabbing her backpack.

"How does a strip club remind you of studying?" Itachi asked, patting the couch in search of his wallet.

"She needs help with anatomy," Suki said, throwing the door opened and running out.

"I'm sure Tobi would be thrilled if he heard that," Sasori said, shaking his head. "When you get back can you help me out with something, Itachi?"

"Depends on what it is," Itachi said, finally finding his wallet and tucking it into his back pocket.

"You're the closest person to Sharin. What should I do to get her to date me?"

"Ask her out somewhere," Itachi said, running out the door in much the same fashion as Suki. He hailed the nearest taxi, slid into the backseat, and gave the driver the address to where he wanted to go.

Itachi wasn't expecting the lights of the house to be on at such a late hour. But, in every window of the hour he pulled up to there was a light on. He paid the can driver and got out of the taxi. He ascended the stairs hurriedly, knocking on the door before stepping back and waiting. A few minutes passed and Itachi knocked on the door again.

"Hold on a second!" a girl's voice called, making Itachi's blood run cold. The door flew opened and Itachi found himself staring at a tall woman with orange hair tied up in a knot on top of her head. She was frowning deeply, her eyes glinting despite the darkness outside.

"What do you want?" She asked, her mouth frowning around the words. Itachi noticed the glinting studs in her face, like the ones that Pein wore.

"I'm here to see Pein," he said, staring at the stud on the bridge of her nose.

"Which one? There's seven of us," she looked angry, as if she was tired of that mistake.

"Uhh…he's my tech class teacher," Itachi said, a little perplexed.

"Deva. So you're Uchiha Itachi, huh? I expected you to be taller. But oh well." She turned, leaving the door opened as she walking into the house. "DEVA! THERE'S A WHORE HERE FOR YOU!"

"Shut the hell up, Ikinara," a voice said from another room. "We all heard him come in." A man with long orange hair tied into a ponytail stepped into the room, smiling. "I'm Ikimono, Deva's brother. He'll be down in a minute. That's Ikinara, she's the local bitch. Just ignore her, everyone else does." Ikinara scowled and punched him hard in the arm, her eyes flashing dangerously.

"When someone finds you dead in an alley, no one's gonna wonder who did it," a third voice said. Itachi looked up at the sound of the familiar voice and saw Deva walking down the stairs located in what Itachi guessed was a sort of entry way. "Hello, Uchiha," Pein said, his voice cold but laced with an undertone of lust.

"Oh, great. Deva's horny. Everyone run for your lives!" Ikimono shouted, jumping to the side when Deva moved to hit him.

"I swear to god, someone shut him up in a closet," a fourth person entered the room, looking thoroughly pissed off. "Or else I probably will kill him." He had spiky long hair and pointed studs that jutted out from the backs of his ears. "Who's the emo kid?"

"That's Deva's new play toy, Uchiha Itachi," Ikinara said, smiling at the recent addition to the group.

"That's Naraka, local asshole," Ikimono whispered to Itachi.

"No one let Jinteki see him, god knows, there'll probably be some huge fight about why he doesn't get a new play toy," Naraka said, sneering a little.

"You're scaring him," another voice said, making Itachi turn yet again to see who was coming. The person that entered the room next was tall but rounded, with his hair pulled back into a little ponytail at the base of his skull. He was wearing a rather floral apron and a smile was on his face. "I'm Preta. Deva told me you'd be coming, so I'm making cookies. I hope you like chocolate chip."

"Uhh…sure," Itachi said, frowning a little.

"Well, then. Go on upstairs, you two. The rest of you, leave Deva and his new friend alone," Preta said, giving the others a stern look. "Find someone else's night to ruin. And Ikimono, you stay away from Asura's room today. He's practicing reading."

"Aw, c'mon, I don't always pick on him," Ikimono said, looking indignant.

"Just when you're bored," Preta said, shaking his head.

"Sorry about that," Deva said as he led Itachi up the stair and down a corridor. "My brothers and sister are a little…eccentric."

"They're all wearing the same studs as you. Any particular reason?" Itachi asked, glancing over his shoulder at the stairs.

"Security measures. They each have a surveillance unit, a tracking unit, microphone and speaker," he pointed to one of the thick gauges in his ear.

"Have you guys had theft problems or something?" Itachi asked, frowning a little.

"None, really. It's just that Preta supports my nano technology and tries to use it as practically as possible. They're sort of my test subjects so I can work out all the bugs before putting things on the market. When you take over your casinos you could probably use some of my nano technology for surveillance." Itachi nodded, following Deva into the room that he had opened the door to. Inside it was dark but warm, dim lights casting long shadows. Itachi could just make out a rather large, very circular bed.

"Interesting," Itachi said, closing the door behind him. "Never would've pegged you as the round bed type." Deva smirked, turning to face Itachi, his eyes blazing. Itachi recognized the look and took a step forward, wrapping his arms around Deva's neck and pressing their lips together. There was no dancing around it, tongues and fingers caressed skin as breath came in heated pants and quiet moans of pleasure. Deva had some how managed to turn Itachi and pulled away just to push Itachi onto the bed, which undulated under his weight, splashing.

"Nice," Itachi said, his eyes half-lidded and full of lust. Deva put a hand on either side of Itachi and hovered over him, bending his neck to bite Itachi's neck as the bed rocked under them, causing their skin to brush together unpredictably.

* * *

"I hate anatomy!" Hinata cried, slamming her book shut and looking desperately at Suki. "What's the point? This is an arm, that's a leg, and that's the head. Why do we need the name for every little thing?"

"It's in the school's curriculum, Hinata, you shouldn't get so upset," Suki said, smiling a little as she pushed her self up onto her knees.

"I still think it's silly. When will I ever need to know any of this?"

"Let's do a fun review, that'll make you happy, right?" Hinata sighed and nodded, though unenthusiastically. Suki smiled and slid over to her. "Let's go over the basics then. What's this bone called?" Suki asked, touching Hinata's collarbone.

"The clavicle," Hinata said, sighing again.

"Right, and these?" Suki asked, brushing her fingers over Hinata's.

"Phalanges."

"And this?" Suki ran her hand up Hinata's thigh.

"The femur," Hinata said, swallowing.

"And this one?" Suki reached up and stroked Hinata's jaw.

"Th-the man-" Hinata paused to swallow again, "mandible."

"Very good," Suki said, smiling. "And what about," she leaned up against Hinata and whispered in her ear "the one that registers my voice?" Hinata didn't answer. She knelt there and shivered, then leaned away from Suki just far enough to take her face between her hand and plant a kiss firmly on her lips. Suki knelt there, astonished for a moment before kissing back, her lips still bent up in a smile. As they kissed, she reached up and unbuttoned Hinata's shirt, sliding it off of her shoulder gently.

"This one is your sternum," Suki said, pulling away from Hinata and poking the bone in the center of her chest. "And this is your areola," Suki said, touching the pink ring around Hinata's nipple. "And this little nub here is your nipple," she took it in her mouth, flicking her tongue over it and eliciting a groan of pleasure from Hinata.

"S-Suki," Hinata gasped, lacing her fingers in Suki's silky blonde hair. Suki gave Hinata's nipple a final flick with her tongue before sitting back and smiling as she pulled Hinata's shirt completely off.

"These are your ribs," she said, trailing her fingers down Hinata's side. "This is your diaphragm, and these are your abs." She kissed down Hinata's stomach, smiling when she reached the waistband of her pants.

"There's some rather interesting anatomy down here," she said, unzipping her pants a sliding them out of the way. "The pelvis," she ran her fingertips along the bone, "the pubis," she ran her fingers along the flesh right beneath where Hinata's bladder was. "And my favorite. This little bud of flesh called the clit," she slid her hand into Hinata's underwear and brushed her finger over the hardening bud, making Hinata gasp in pleasure.

"More," she hissed, bucking her hips a little. "More, more."

* * *

"Sasuke," Tobi said, looking up from the book he had been studying to glance at his cousin, who was reading and eating soup. "Do you ever get the feeling that something's wrong?"

"Sometimes," Sasuke admitted, not looking up from his book. "But it keeps getting worse. Like someone's screaming at me to fix things. I'm a little worried about Naruto."

"I'm sure it's probably just the studying. Maybe we should give it a rest?" But the way Tobi said it made it sound like he wanted Sasuke to disagree.

"Maybe after finals. I really need to bring my grades up," Sasuke said, biting his lip and looking back at the book. "I'm sure everything's fine."

* * *

Riayu: And that's the end of this chapter. If you want the lemons, send me a review and I'll re-release the chapter with them. It won't take to long, I don't think. And now we'll turn to Sye, who will be taking over the outros from now on.

**Sye: **MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! General evil laughter

Psy: Joy. Joy and jellybeans.

Sye: Oh, come now. I'm not that bad, am I?

Sharin: What do you think?

Sye: Good to know that I'm so appreciated. Anyway.... REVIEW! Don't you all want to see the delicious lemons? Starts handing out citrus candies to reviewers


	8. Monday part 1

**Riayu: **I AM SOOOOO SORRY! I honestly didn't mean for it to take this long to update. I dunno why, but I really haven't felt like writing lately. I feel terrible now.

**Psy: **Jeez, have a cow why don't you. It's just a couple of weeks.

**Riayu: **EXACTLY! WEEKS! I USUALLY UPDATE EVERY COUPLE OF _DAYS_!

**Sharin: **Way to add fuel to the fire, Psy.

**Psy: **I don't think I've ever seen her spaz this much.

**Riayu: Having a panic attack **PLEASE FORGIVE ME!

**Sharin: **This is definitely a first.

**Disclaimer: **She very obviously does not own Naruto.

**Riayu:**Also, sorry it's so short.

* * *

"Mommy! Hey Mommy, wake up!" Sharin rolled over and opened her eyes, smiling down at her son. "Mommy! It's time to get up!"

"What time is it, Kuro?" She asked, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. When Kuro didn't answer she glanced at the clock. Seven thirty. No problem, it was Sunday…but the clock said Monday. She jumped out of bed, shrieking loudly as she ran to the bathroom to brush her teeth and pull her hair back into a ponytail. She threw on the first shirt and pair of jeans she found, slid on a pair of socks, and slipped on her shoes. She grabbed an apple from the bowl of fruit that sat in the middle of the dining room table and stored it in the pocket of the hoody shoo took from the rack beside the door.

"Psy, are you ready for school?" She called over her shoulder, sitting on the ground as she hurriedly tied her shoes.

"I've been waiting for you to get your butt out here. Did you over-sleep or something?" Psy asked, stepping into Sharin's view. "Nice shirt."

"Huh? Oh, I forgot about this shirt," Sharin looked down at the black shirt she was wearing and smiled fondly. "I had this weird affinity to black when Mom first found me. This was the first shirt she got me." It had a grey spider-web pattern that formed a rather demonic looking skull. "I stopped wearing it a while after she got me 'cause it scared Kuro." She stood up and opened the door, letting in the early morning sunlight. The two of them stepped outside and walked along the sidewalk, ignoring the cars that whizzed by.

"How far away do you live from the campus?" Psy asked, looking around at the little neighborhood they were walking through.

"About ten minutes. We'll be there soon. Are you sure you want to go to school today? You're still limping."

"I'm sure, don't worry. And I'm not limping that badly," Psy said, glaring a little as she put an effort into making her gait steady, though the pain was clear in her eyes.

"He did a number on you, didn't he?" Sharin asked, looking sympathetic.

"If you don't stop that, I'll hit you," Psy threatened, finally sliding back into her limping gait with a less pained look. "I don't want your sympathy."

"I let you live in my house, feed you, and nurse you back to health, and this is the thanks I get?" Sharin asked, holding her hand to a chest in a wounded gesture.

"I'm talking to you, isn't that enough?" Psy asked, arching an eyebrow. "Did you want me to stop hating you or something? Or do you want me to completely ignore you and try to beat you up again?"

"No, that's okay. I like it better this way. Here we are," Sharin smiled and turned onto the path that led through the sakura trees. "I love coming to school through here. It's really peaceful, especially in the morning. Don't you think?"

"Yeah, really peaceful. You know we've passed about five couples making out, right?" Psy arched an eyebrow. "Or do you consider that peaceful?"

"I usually just ignore them. The smell here is soothing, and the wind in the blossoms is comforting."

"To bad they're all withering. Plants tend to do that in the fall, don't they?"

"You're a very negative person," Sharin observed, glancing in Psy's direction.

"If you were raped as many times as I've been raped you'd be negative too."

"At least you have your memory," Sharin said blissfully.

"Sasori thinks that's how your son came to be. You were raped and you came to lose your memory because of it," Psy said, apparently unaffected by the solemn thought.

"I don't think so," Sharin said, seemingly not bothered by the topic. "I love Kuro very much, and I think subconsciously I would reject him if I didn't love his father."

"But you don't know for sure," Psy pointed out, smiling a little when Sharin opened the door to the building that hosted their biology class for her. "You're such a gentleman."

"Well, I do have to set an example for Kuro, don't I?"

"You're going to make him think that the girl should hold the door for others," Psy said with a chuckle.

"Never thought of it that way. Then again, Kuro might grow up thinking that he'll some day turn into a woman. Just about everyone in his life is a woman, why shouldn't he be one?"

"What about Sasori and Naruto and the rest of them, they're guys," Psy said, sitting down in her seat in the biology room.

"True, but…I don't know. Why are we even arguing about this?" Sharin asked, taking the seat behind Psy so that they could continue talking.

"Because it's amusing? I dunno. Hey, that drawing that you had the other day, the one of me…Where'd that come from?"

"Hmm? Oh, the one with all of those metal things? I dunno, it just kinda showed up on the paper when I wasn't paying attention. I've done lots of drawings before. My mom says that they're probably memories that I can't bring up on a conscious level."

"Do you have any more of them with you?" Psy asked, turning around in her seat to face Sharin, who was fumbling around in her bag for a notebook.

"Yeah, I have tons," Sharin paused, staring at the notebook in her hands. "Some of them are pretty graphic, though…I'm not sure if you really want to look at them…" Psy ignored her and took the picture from Sharin, opening it up to the first page. To Psy's surprise, the picture was in color, though it seemed only to be a mass of reds and oranges at first. After a moment of staring, Psy began to notice the charred shapes surrounded by the violent flames. The longer she stared, the more Psy saw beyond the fire. There were people scrambling around, trying to climb out of windows or crawling along the floor trying to escape the black smoke roiling through the air. In the middle of the picture there was a woman with dark hair lying on the ground, curled in a little ball so that all that could be seen were arms and legs and some of her back. Flames were closing in around her, but she didn't seem to see them, and none of the people in the picture seemed to care about her. It took Psy another moment to notice that there was another red in the picture that didn't belong to the fire. There was blood around the woman, a little pool beneath her head like a flattened crimson pillow.

After staring for a moment longer Psy flipped the page. The next picture was also colored, and a young woman was hunched over in an alley, her clothes burnt and her face blackened with soot and smoke. She was sitting down with one arm resting on her knees and her head resting on her arm as her other arm wrapped, almost protectively, around her midriff. Psy noticed that the woman's face was hidden by her long, blonde-streaked hair. Picture after picture showed the same woman, her belly slowly growing as her hair turned from mostly brown to completely blonde. Then there was a woman in the hospital with a baby in her arms who looked almost nothing like her.

"You used to have brown hair?" Psy asked, turning in her seat again, ignoring the teacher that had walked into the room and started writing on the board.

"If the pictures are right, then yes, I did," Sharin said, looking fondly at the picture. "I can remember that one, but the ones before it," she shook her head. "It's like all my memories are stored in that little body of his." She smiled and looked up at Psy, her smile widening after a moment. "You should probably turn around; the teacher looks like she's ready to kill you."

* * *

**Psy: **D'ohshit.

**Sharin: **Someone's about to get in trouble.

**Sye: **CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER, YAY!

**Psy: **You are insufferable.

**Sye: **Likewise. Anyway, I just wanted to let all you readers know, I was partially responsible for this delay as well. Being Riayu's only beta reader means I'm pretty damn important to the writing process, and me messing up my grades and getting my computer locked down isn't gonna help that.

**Sharin: **You're rambling again.

**Sye: Indignantly **The readers have a right to know.

**Psy: **Just close off the chapter already.

**Sye: **Yeah, yeah, yeah, don't get your g-string in a knot. Anyways, REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! I CANNOT stress this point enough! **Passes out treat bags to reviewers**


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